Placed alone in an observation cell, he grew increasingly fearful, said Tahmooressi. He grabbed a light bulb and stabbed himself in the neck, creating a small wound. He was taken to Tijuana’s Hospital General and stitched up.

He is not complaining about his treatment, but longs for “my family, my friends, good food.”

Regular visits from an English-speaking chaplain, Luis Benito Juarez, and his Christian faith is helping him pull through, Tahmooressi said. “I put my faith in God, that he will take care of me,” he said. “It was just a big mistake, and I hope that the people here will realize that and that the judge will realize that. I am good now, I am calm, and I am relaxed.”